The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
The correct answer is: It suggests the unfairness that children are not being humanized.
Explanation
In Florence Kelley’s powerful speech against child labor, the metaphor “beasts of burden” is a deliberate and shocking rhetorical choice designed to expose the profound injustice of the system. This phrase contributes directly to her central theme by highlighting the complete dehumanization of working children.
A “beast of burden” refers to an animal, like an ox or a donkey, used solely for physical labor. These animals are treated as property or tools, valued only for their ability to work. They are not seen as beings with rights, feelings, or a future beyond their service. By applying this term to young children, Kelley forces her audience to confront a horrifying reality: society and industry were treating children not as developing human beings, but as expendable animals. This comparison immediately strips away any romanticized notion of children working and instead presents it as a cruel and exploitative practice.
The metaphor powerfully argues that these children are being denied their essential humanity. They are robbed of their childhood, their right to education, their health, and their chance to grow. They are reduced to their economic output, just like a farm animal. This stark image is meant to evoke outrage and shame in her listeners. Kelley’s goal was not merely to state facts but to make her audience feel the moral corruption of child labor. The phrase “beasts of burden” accomplishes this by creating an emotionally charged parallel that underscores the ultimate unfairness of a system that values profit over the lives and humanity of its youngest members.
